Modulation of nutrient metabolism and homeostasis by the immune system

Interactions between nutrition and immunity are diverse and have profound implications on animal growth and productivity. The innate immune system provides protection during the initial stages of infection and is responsible for mediating many of the alterations in nutrient metabolism. The macrophage is the key sensory and regulatory cell of the innate immune system. Their pro-inflammatory cytokines coordinate local immunity to pathogens, yet also act systemically to alter metabolic homeostasis and decrease food intake and growth rate. Altered energy, amino acid, lipid, and mineral metabolism have nutritionally important implications. For example, an innate immune response results in decreased uptake of amino acids by skeletal muscles and a corresponding increase in uptake by the liver and to a lesser extent by leukocytes. The net result is a decrease in amino acid requirements with no change in the efficiency of their use for growth. The shift in the priority of individual tissues for nutrients appears to be accomplished by changes in the types and amounts of their nutrient transporters and storage proteins. Adaptive immune responses result in considerably more subtle changes in nutrient metabolism than innate responses.